Apparatus for feeding envelops.



B. LANGLEY.

APPARATUS FORJEEDING 'E NVELOPS.

' APPLICATION FILED JAN 25. ms.

LWWYOE, v Patented Aug. 29, 1916.

5 SHEETSSHEET r.

wi/tweooes B. LANGLEY.

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ENVELOPS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN- 25, 19I3.

Patented Aug. 29, 1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2A mwaso wi/tweooco 1 ,Q. a [5 74. dim? B. LANGLEY. IAPPARATUS FOR FEEDING ENVELOPS.

APPLICATiON FILED JAN- 25 19l3- 1 ,1 fifiofiu Patented Aug. 29, 1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

B. LANGLEY.

APPARATUS FOR FEEDlNG ENVELOPS.

APPLICATION FILED ]AN- 25, 1913.

atented Aug. 9; 1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

www

waw

B. LANGLEY.

APPARATUS FOR mums ENVELOPS.

v APPLICATION F|LED JAN-2511913- l 1 9530 6 Patented Aug. 29, 1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

ll ll BERT LANQLEY, Q13 GEMKNTHOOTQ, NEW

ALPPAEJATUS 3 3B, FEEDING- Ili l meeroe,

Application filed Jenner-y 2.5,

To all whom it may ooncern:

Be known that I, BERT LANGLEY, e citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing in Crantwood, county of Bergen, and State of NewJersey, have invented a certain new and useful Appmraeus for FeedingEnvelops, of which the following is a speci fication.

This invention relates to automatic feeding devices for sheets, cords,envelops and the like, with particular reference to that type ofmechanism in which ,the feeding; is done sheet by sheet from a each orpile.

One object of the invention is to provide 1: siingle and eilicientmechanism which will deliver eutonmlicelly single sheets or envelopsfrom 21 steel; or pile, for Whatever purpose such delivery may herequired.

Another ohiec't is toedept such a mechanism {or with a typewriter forthe auto-- matic "feeding; of envelope, cards and the like into thetjoewriter carriage.

Another ohject is to provide such a typewriter et'ezuzhment with. meansto perinil an easy and rapid nwvenient of the device into and our, ofoperative position.

Anode-i1- obj :zl; so he combine rhe ettachineni; with l'a. typewriterthat the normal and easy o1; 'ution of the letter will not he mile 1" edin any we-3y; and shill other oh jects will appear in the followingdescrip tion and claims.

ln the drmvings, Figure l is a front elevation of the device asIl10ll1llJQl-UPOD a typewriter; Fig. 2 is a side eleietion, partly insection, aloi f the line 2-2 of Fi i; Fig. 2) is a, front elevationshowing a partly eonr pleted movement oi the mechanism; l 4: is :1sectional pla n taken tl'irough the line 4-4 of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a,front elevation showing the mechanism at one limit of its movement; Fig.3 is a side elevation showing a tilting arrangement; Fig. 7 is u frontelevation of the device when in a tilted or inoperative position; Figs-8,, 9 and 10 illustrate the various phases of the feeding movement; l1and 12 are detail views showing the application so the feeding plungerof detachable needle points do io'ncd 'lio engage and cause thesuccessive feeding: oi: curds; Fig. 1?, is a perspective view of anangular plate deteehuhly secured to the floor of the chute or holder forthe cards or envelops; and Fig. 14 shows e mG(li'llC2L-' lion in theconstruction and arrangement of Specifieetion of Letsers Serial No.Mihllll.

springe acting upon the secondary feed device The broad features of theinv on includes esupp H; lor the steel; of sheets or envelope to, heran; 1 means to secure their best slniwn l cured to :1 frame pin shack iseonelzzinhly plate 14; and follower urm plate 13 oil; 16, which are k:l'orwnrcl by the spring 17. This ii-rangeni 6 brings the forwardenvelop in Jo eontael with ll primary feeding; device wQ' Y comprisee nplunger 18, vertically n oveole in e guii o"; 15) loeeted in an upward eel' 7 J i"'l.'m.oe plate 13, us best shown in As shown in ehe stuclnd mon iovel IR- 1? brood inclinee fooe 2d oi l'he under the envelop limpxvi depressed, so i of lhe plunge].-

.elop in the sliuch, v This nu'weincnt oi plunger is effect d by a rainarm 21 iliulcruined at and provided with on open eeni slot 23 which astud 22L :ictoclied to the upper end of the plunger. ll spring 25"lends'le hold the Ellll'l 2i and plunger 18 in their upper position,shown in Fig. 1. All the end of the plunger movement. the feed ing oi?the. envelop is still incomplete. as the plunger foe-iii 2! still abutsthe forward edge off the envelop and if grim'iers or rolls were hroughtin'lo notion at this poi. t, they would seize the plunger as well. ll:is at this instant that the secondary feeding device eoinple'l: thefeed.

The seeondury feeding device eonu'irises a lie'ht 'runie or plate 26hung upon pivots 27 rerried by e yoke The yoke hes bars if, 29 attachedto its ei'nls, and these bars 'l ogelher with the yoke are sliclahleverti' cally in the perf rmed lugs 30, 30 of frame plate, 13. The partsdescribed. are normally kept elevated by springs 31, 31 atfollower l5jlulcruined to you inched to frame plate 13 and engaging the yoke 28.The frame provided with in the present instance, as llllllfilllllsuitable -30 v the full extent of its guiding slot 19.

' the'instant the arm 21 contacts with pro jection 33, it ceases to actupon the plunger 18, as may be seen in Fig. 3. The first contact withprojection 33 swings the frame 26 to the right'as viewed in Fig. 9 sothat it assumes a position back of therear edge of the envelop. the arm21 and frame 26 is then downward, carrying with them the envelop asshown in Fig. 10; As shown in that figure, the envelop is fed directlyinto the bite of a pair of ,rolls 34, 35, which may be of anydescription and used for any purpose.

To prevent the envelop from escaping the control of the feeding devices,a pair of drags comprising light leaf springs 36, 36 are attached to thestack support, and bear against the forward envelop so that its freefall cannot take place. Any mechanism or suitable connection that willmove the arm 21 downward will cause the feeding of a sheet. This arm mayalso be operated manually and for this purpose a finger lug 21 isprovided, as shown in Fig. 6.

As shown in Fig. 7, provision is made for handling and feeding cards orenvelops of diflerentlengths; The support 11 is fitted with slidingsides 37, 37 which are given a simultaneous movement to and from eachother by means of a lever 38, pivoted at 38, to which the sides areconnected by links 39, 39. the motion being con'n'nunicated throughslots 40, 40 located in the way 11. It will be noticed that thismechanism centers the stack as well as giving it proper support.

The mechanism thus far described is capable of wide and generalapplication. Among its many possible uses is its adaptation to thetypewriter, and in thisconnection applicant discloses further devicesintended to supplement the mechanism already diselosed so as to providefor an effective cooperation of the feeding device and a typewriter.

Referring to the drawings, 41 represents the frame of a standard frontStlll-ZO type.- writer. As best shown in Figs. 1 and 2, a pair of angleplates 42. 42 are secured to this frame, use being made/of frame. bolts43.- 43 for this pur ose. To the plates 42,

42 are attached the standards 44, 44 united The continued movement of bya cross-rail 45. Bolted at 46, 46 to the cross-rail are members 47, 47which support the plate frame 13 and mechanism already described.Mecharism is further provided for the automatic control of the feedingdevice by means of the typewriter carriage. In the present instance thiscomprises a ratchet arm 48 fulcrumed at 22 and having a ratchetengagement with arm 21 by means of a spring pressed pawl 49. Adapted tocoact with this arm is an upright member 50 carrying a roller 51 andshackled to the typewriter carriage 52 at 53.

In operation, the carriage when moved to the right, causes the roller 51to wipe the arm 48, the latter being moved by the carriage to the right.This movement depresses the arm 21 and effects a feeding operation inwhich an envelop is entered into the bite of the rollers 54, 55 of thecarriage.

For the effective use of a feeding device of this character incombination with a typewriter, means should be provkied for throwing thedevice into and out of operative position without trouble or loss oftime. Accordingly the mechanism described is specially mounted so thatthis result may be secured.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2, 6 and 7, the members 47, 47 bolted to thecross-rail 45 have in their upstanding ears an arcuate slot 56,concentric with a bearing 57 in the ears in which the stack support 11,12 may be rotated. Attached to the stadk support and passing through theslots 56, 56 are clamping nuts 58, 58 by which the stack support may belocked in either the full or dotted line positions shown in Fig. 6. Itwill be seen that this construction permits an easy and expeditiousmovement of the feeding device into and out of operative position. Whenthe device is thus thrown into opcrative position, the arm 43 may rideover or upon the stud 50 attached to the carriage. if the carriageshould happen to be in that position; or the stud 50 would be on thewrong side of the arm 43 if the carriage were at the extreme right whenthe device was swung forward. To prevent any disablement from thiscause. the arm 4 is provided with the ratchet connection ineludingspring pawl 49. so that no interference between the carriage and feedingmechanism can occur.

When a feeding mechanism is used with a typewriter, it is of greatimportance that the typewriter carriage should not be burdened with evena part of the weight of such mechanism, as every ounce of additionalweight superposed on the carriage makes the entire .machine that moresluggish in operation.

mesmeenvelop as well as to move it toward the carriage rolls. Asa resultno auxiliary paper" guide is needed t'ti direct the envelop into thebite of the rolls. The envelop is fully corp trolled and has a completeedgewise feed all the way from the stack to the carriage rolls andauxiliary guides do not have to be added to the carriage. The ,onlyweight added to the carriage is that of the stud 50 which is relativelyof but little account. The dciice therefore has the great advantage ofnot interferingwith the regular operation of the typewriter to theslightest perceptible degree. But while the invention may possess greatutility in connection with a type writer, it is not to be limited tothis particular use. The feeding mechanism herein d1sclosed has-a. widerange of usefulness; not only for the feeding of cards, envelope and thelike, but also sheets of every description, of paper, metal, or othermaterial.

Fig. 14 shows a modification consisting in the substitution for thesprings 31 that act upon the yoke 28 of coiled springs 66 surroundingbars 29.

Figs. 11, 12 and 18 illustrate means for adapting the apparatus to feedcards. The feed foot- 20 of plunger 18 is, on each side 7 of the latter,provided with opposite notches 60 in its upper and lower edges. In thesenotches are removahly seated spring clips 61 carrying needle points 62extending below the edge of the feed foot and rearwardly inclined orcurved, as seen in Fig. 12. When the plunger descends in the feedingoperation, the needle points will be carried into engagement with theleading card and move it down into engagement with the paper feeddevices of the typewriting machine. On the door of the container 11 isremovably at tached a spring clip 63 having at the rear an overturnedresilient flange 6 2 that en gages the rear edge of the floor and at thefront a downwardly extending curtain or flange 6-3 which aii'ords aguide or support for the card as it moves downward to the feed devices.Such a guide plate may also be used in connection with the feeding ofenvelops.

vI claim:

1. A sheet-feeding mechanism having a support for the sheets, a rollertowhich the sheets are fed, a primary feeding device adapted to advancea sheet part of the re quired feeding distance, a secondary feed ingdevice adapted to complete the feeding movement toward the roller, incombination with a lever for actuating successively the primary and thesecondary feeding devices.

2. A sheet feeding mechanism having a support for the sheets, a primaryfeeding device adapted to advance a sheet edgewise part of the feedingdistance, a secondary feeding device adapted to complete the edgewisefeeding movement, and an actuator directly engaging each of said devicesin the feeding operation.

, 3. A sheet feeding mechanism having a support for the sheets, aplurality of feeding devices adapted to act upon each sheet to feed thesheets one by one, and an actu'ator adapted to engage and to operatealternately the respective feeding devices.

4. A sheet feeding mechanism having a support for the sheets, aplurality of feeding devices adapted to operate successively upon eachsheet to feed the sheets one by one and a lever adapted by a singlemovement to directly actuate the feeding devices in a cooperativeteeding movement.

'3. A mechanism for feeding envelops comprising a support for theenvelope, a feeding device adapted to engage the envelop beneath theflap, a second feeding device adapted to engage the rear edge of theenvelop, and actuating means for the feeding devices.

6. in combination, a typewriter and an attachment for feeding envelopsto the typewriter, the said attachment including a plurality ofindependently movable feeding deyices adapted respectively to engage theenvelop under the flap and at its rear edge and means adapted by acontinuing movement to successively actuate the feeding de vices.

"Z. in combination, a typewriter, an attachment for feeding envelop tothe typewriter, the said attachment iniluding a primary feeding deviceadapted to take under the flap, and a secondary feeding device engagingthe rear edge of the envelop,- and means whereby the said devices arecontrolled by the movement of the typewriter carriage.

8. In combination, the typewriter and a sheet feeding mechanism for thetypewriter, the said mechanism including a plurality of feeding devicesadapted to engage the sheets to feed them directly to the paper feedroll devices on the carriage, a lever for actuat ing said feedingdevices and means for actuating said lever by a movement of thecarriage.

S). in a feeding device for typewriters, a feeding plunger, a feedingplate, and a cam arm adapted to actuate successively the plunger and theplate to teed sheets or envelops to the typewriter carriage,substantially as described.

10. in combination, a typmvriter, feeding mechanism for deliveringsheets or envelops to the typewriter carriage, the entire feedingmechanism being carried by the stationary frame of the typeuu'iter, andmeans whereby the power to operate the feeding mechanism is derived fromthe movement of the carriage.

11. In combination, a typewriter, feeding mechanism for deliveringsheets orenvelops to the typewriter carriage, the entire feedingmechanism being carried by the stationary frame of the typewriter, andaprojection mounted upon the carriage and adapted to control the feedingmechanism during the carriage movement.

. '12. In combination, a typewriter carriage, feeding mechanismstationary relative to the carriage for delivering sheets or envelops tothe carriage, an arm positioned in the path of the carriage and adaptedto operate the feeding mechanism when moved in one direction by thecarriage and to yield idly when moved in the reverse direction by thecarriage.

13. In combination, a typewriter carriage, a stationary feedingmechanism for delivering sheets or envelops to the carriage, andprovided with a ratchet arm positioned in the path of part of thecarriage and adapted to actuate the feeding mechanism upon movement ofthe carriage.

14. In combination, a typewriter, a mechanism for feeding envelops to.the typewriter carriage, and a support carried by the typewriter frameupon which the said mechanism is mounted, the support being swivele'd sothat the mechanism may be moved into and out of operative position withrespect to the typewriter carriage and means for holding the feedingdevice in its two set positions, comprising fiat plate swivel bearings,one of the plates of each bearing having an annular slot and the otherplates provided with clamping nuts, adapted to positively hold thedevice in set positions.

15. In combination, a typewriter and a mechanism for feeding envelopsinto the typewriter carriage, the said mechanism being swiveled to thetypewriter frame so that it may be moved into and out of operativeposition with respect to the typewriter carriage and means on thecarriage foractuating the feeding device when it is in operativeposition.

16. In combination, a typewriter, a-holder for envelops and sheets to befed thereto, a feeding plunger adapted to take under the flap of anenvelop and one or more sheet engaging needle-points detachably mountedon the plunger, curved backwardly and adapted to act on the front sheetof a stack.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name.

BERT LANGLEY.

Witnesses:

M. L. SMITH, H. on M

